Indonesian girl, lost in 2004 tsunami, found 7 years later

Dec 23, 2011, 8:23 GMT

Banda Aceh, Indonesia - An Indonesian girl who was thought to have died in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that devastated Aceh province has been found alive and reunited with her parents, her grandfather said.

Meri Yulanda, also known as Wati, went missing at the age of 7 with a sibling when tsunami water engulfed her neighbourhood in West Aceh district.

After days of a fruitless search, her parents gave up hope of finding her alive.

Wati survived and was raised for seven years by a single mother, who forced her to beg on the streets daily, said Ibrahim, her grandfather.

'My granddaughter was forced to beg until late at night,' Ibrahim said. 'When she couldn't get enough money, she was beaten.'

Wati was reunited with her family Wednesday after she was taken to the office of the village chief in West Aceh by people who found her wandering aimlessly on the street.

When people asked her, she said she was looking for her parents in Meulaboh, the capital of West Aceh, but could not remember any of her relatives' names, except her grandfather Ibrahim.

News of this reached Ibrahim, who then went to the village office and the girl's mother, Yusnidar, identified her by birthmarks on her hip and neck and a mole on her right temple.

Ibrahim said the family would hold a gathering to give thanks for the reunion.

The December 26, 2004 tsunami killed about 170,000 people in Aceh alone.

On Sunday, families of the victims in Aceh were to commemorate the disaster by holding prayer sessions at mass graves.